Akamas Peninsula

If God had wanted turtles on the beach, He would have given
them money to pay for the sunbeds.

The Akamas Peninsula is in the far west of Cyprus
at its most westerly point. Named after the son of Theseus, hero of the
Trojan Wars and founder of the city-kingdom of Soli.

The Akamas Peninsula is an area of outstanding natural beauty -
deep gorges, a wild landscape, wide sandy bays. It is also an
area of great biodiversity and ecological significance. Home to
530 plant species, a third of the total for Cyprus, 126 of which
are endemic to Cyprus. An unspoilt wild place thanks to its
inaccessibility.

Cyprus sits at the crossroads of three major flora zones -
Europe, Africa and Asia. As a consequence Cyprus has a high
number of plant species, 1750, of which 127 are endemic. The
number of species found on Akamas runs to approximately 530, of
which 33 are endemic. The variety of fauna is equally impressive
- 168 birds, 12 mammals, 20 reptiles and 16 butterfly species.

Almost all the geological strata found on Cyprus is represented
in Akamas. This coupled with the varied topography has led to a
wide variety of microclimates which in turn has led to the large
biodiversity and sheer natural beauty of the area.

At Lara Bay, an important turtle breeding site.
Home to two endangered turtle species - green turtle and hawks-bill turtle.

The importance of the Akamas Peninsula is recognised far beyond
the shores of Cyprus. The European Council has included the
Akamas Peninsula within its Mediterranean protection programme.
In a report, commissioned by the Cyprus Government and financed
by the World Bank, it was recommended that the Akamas Peninsula
be treated as a Biosphere Reserve which would include a large
National Park area.

Within Cyprus, Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace have
campaigned hard for the Akamas Peninsula to be declared a
National Park.

The Akamas Peninsula is under threat, property developers whose
eyes are dazzled by dollars at the thought of the last bit of
unspoilt Cyprus awaiting exploitation, the Greek Orthodox Church
who believe they have a God given right to exploit the land they
own and the British Military, who in a throwback to colonial
days, use it for military training.

The Akamas Peninsula has powerful defenders, FoE, Greenpeace,
Green Party and the tourist industry in Ayia Napa.
The first three are known for their commitment to the environment, but
questions have been raised about the latter. Is it a case of
Saint Paul on the road to Damascus, having laid waste to Ayia
Napa they know at first hand the results of uncontrolled
development, or a case of falling tourist figures for Cyprus,
where one extra hotel bed in the west is one more empty bed in
Ayia Napa?

The Cypriot government is turning a blind eye to illegal hotel
developments within Akamas. When, the then Foreign Minister
Michaelides was allowed to continue with illegal hotel development,
how can the Cypriot government expect to be taken seriously by
the rest of the world when it tolerates this level of corruption
within its own ranks? This and other illegal hotels should be
bulldozed to the ground as a warning to other illegal developers.
The Michaelides family own the Thanos chain of hotels, tourists to
Cyprus should boycott this chain.

The Cypriot government are quick to accuse Rauf Denktash and the
illegal TRNC of corruption: 'he who casts the first stone ....'

There is little point in safeguarding Akamas from abuse by the
British military if it simply opens the way for greedy, corrupt,
Cypriot speculators.